The 21st Assembly of the University Park Undergraduate Association (UPUA) met on Wednesday to swear in three new representatives, confirm the executive director of records, and hear special presentations from THON and Students United Against Poverty.

The meeting started with a special presentation from the primary UPUA THON chair, Emily Milton. A deep dive into the history of UPUA’s THON efforts was presented, analyzing the numbers from the past few assemblies.

Following the THON presentation, Rasha Elwakil and Isabela Drummond, members of Students United Against Poverty, began their presentation. The group acts as the student arm of the Office of Student Care & Advocacy, helping connect students with resources for food, stable housing, and other essential needs.

In the 10-minute presentation, the two speakers then mentioned a potential collaboration between UPUA and SUAP. The main idea presented to UPUA was to start a university-wide donation drop box containing hygiene products, clothing, and canned/boxed food.

The meeting then moved into the president’s report. President Kat Hogan and Vice President Maria Lopez gave a rundown of the events happening on campus this week. She reminded the assembly of upcoming deadlines and interesting events to attend.

There were no liaison reports or old business reports in today’s meeting.

Confirmations & Swearing-Ins

Up next came Ray Ncube. He gave a quick but powerful speech on why he thinks he fits the role of executive director of records.

He mentioned increasing trainability accessibly and making the record-keeping process as efficient as possible. He then faced a five-minute Q&A, where he was asked his favorite Berkey Creamery ice cream flavor.

“Not the biggest ice cream guy, but you can’t go wrong with the classics, chocolate and vanilla,” Ncube stated. This response and his speech were enough to get him voted in.

Afterwards, UPUA swore in multiple members, including into new positions, including:

• Deputy Chief of Staff Nurya Abdullah
• Archivist Elijah Schultz
• Executive Director of Records Ncube
• Programming Director of Justice and Equity Klarha Cajuste
• Judicial Clerk Cristina MacCormac
• Judicial Clerk Matthew Chalco
• Judicial Clerk Emmy Corlett

The UPUA meeting then broke into a five-minute caucus breakdown.

New Business

UPUA proposed Bill #11-21 to expand Save A Life Day at Penn State. The initiative focuses on raising awareness about opioid overdoses and providing students with access to naloxone, also known as Narcan.

Narcan can quickly reverse the effects of an opioid overdose and help restore a person’s breathing. Save A Life Day began in West Virginia in 2020 and has helped reduce the stigma surrounding Narcan, while also providing people with an important tool to respond to overdoses that could one day save a life.

The proposed event will take place on Thursday, September 24, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

To encourage student participation, UPUA will also offer items such as Poppi and food. The Department of Public Relations will promote the event through Instagram posts and other awareness efforts focused on suicide prevention and the Save A Life Day tabling event.

The Bill went to a roll-call vote, with no opposition (26-0-0).

The Chief Justice of the Judicial Board had nothing to report. The Chief of Staff and Executive Directors wished everyone in the room a happy ozone day and went on to describe efforts across the globe currently working to repair our ozone.

The Speaker of the Assembly reminded the assembly of upcoming deadlines, offering reassurance and guidance on how to meet them. Vice Speaker of the Assembly looked back on the 9/11 memorial that he attended last week, saying the event is “one of the best annual events held on campus.”

The committee reports then took place as each chair updated the executive board on their group’s status. All chairs encouraged assembly members to participate in the many “table” events the UPUA is running in the coming weeks.